


Day by Day

by ellipsisthegreat



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-12-12
Updated: 2010-12-12
Packaged: 2017-10-13 15:39:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,275
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/138911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ellipsisthegreat/pseuds/ellipsisthegreat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's amazing just how little time it takes for your entire world to be turned upside down…(Two-shot.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Day by Day

_**DISCLAIMER:** Kingdom Hearts and everything affiliated with it belongs to SquareEnix and Disney. Also, _ ' _Monday's Child' is a Mother Goose nursery rhyme, and as such doesn't belong to me._ _All I own is the plot…_

Everyone who had ever seen them interact knew that Hayner Duncan and Olette Jenkins belonged together. It was one of those whimsical romances that began as soon as they met and would still be going strong a hundred years later when they were surrounded by their great-great-grandkids and holding hands and slipping off into the great beyond together.

Hayner was the ace of Twilight High's Struggle Team. He'd led the team to the nationals in his freshman year, to the semi-finals in his sophomore year, and to the finals in his junior year. Now, in his senior year, he was expected to help them _win_ the finals.

Olette was the Struggle Team's manager, the valedictorian of her class, and the school's sweetheart. She always had a kind word to say, was always the first to lend a helping hand to someone in need, and always had time to listen to someone's problems. Even people like Larxene, who always had a sarcastic word ready, had a hard time being mean to her.

They were the perfect couple.

Too bad Lady Fate doesn't believe in perfection.

(KNEEL,PAGEBREAK!)

… _Monday's child is fair of face…_

"Good job, guys!" Hayner said, wiping his sweaty face on the inside of his jersey. "Let's call it a day for now—see you tomorrow!"

"I have towels for everyone!" Olette exclaimed from her customary perch on the bench, stacks of towels sitting beside her. She stood and passed them out, beaming encouragingly at each team member as he took one. "Keep up the good work!"

"Thanks, Olette!" Sora said with a friendly wave.

Olette returned the wave, but turned to speak to Hayner as he approached to fetch his own towel. "Hayner, can I talk to—"

"Olette! I need your help with something!" Pence wheezed from the doorway to the gym, red-faced from his evident sprint from the computer lab (which was nearly all the way on the other side of the school from the gym).

"Okay, coming!" Olette said, giving Hayner an apologetic smile. "Can we talk later?"

"Yeah, sure." Hayner said, smiling back at her and hoping his blush could be blamed on the fact that practice had just ended rather than the way his heart sped up at the sight of her smile.

"So when're you gonna ask her out, lover boy?" Roxas teased gently, elbowing his best friend as Olette and Pence disappeared from the gym.

"Shut up, pipsqueak." Hayner said, shoving the smaller boy back. "I'll ask when I'm ready and the time is right."

"Talk about yer puppy love on yer own damn time!" Cid Highwind, the gruff Struggle Coach, said. "And get the fuck outta my gym! Scoot!"

"What's taking you so long?" Axel, Roxas' best friend and stalker (no one else understood it, either), asked as they went to the locker room to take showers. "Everyone knows you guys are head over heels, so just _tell her_ already."

"Yeah. I'm getting sick of watching you guys dance around each other." Roxas said.

"Fuck you guys—it's none of your business anyhow." Hayner snapped, pulling off his shirt.

"Oh come _on_ , Hayner!" Sora said.

"Shut _up_!" Hayner said. "I'm gonna tell her, okay? I just…haven't had a chance!"

"It's your senior year, dude!" Demyx said, words slightly muffled due to the sound of showers running. "If you don't tell her soon, she'll go off to college and you'll have missed your chance!"

"We're going to the same college, Demyx. I'll still have plenty of chances." Hayner rolled his eyes. "And I already said I'm gonna tell her, so _drop it_."

"Fine, fine, oh fearless leader." Riku drawled. "But I agree with everyone else—you should just go ahead and get it over with."

"Okay, I get it!" Hayner exclaimed, shutting the water off and drying himself off angrily. "Can we talk about something else, now?"

"Hmm…well, Nationals start next week." Roxas mused.

"Wonder if it'll be any different from last year?" Sora sighed, remembering how easy the first few matches had been up until the quarter-finals.

"I heard some teams have improved a lot since last year." Axel said.

"Yeah, but so have we." Hayner said. "We're gonna tear down the competition! And we're gonna kick SeeD Academy's _ass_ this year!"

"Aw, man." Tidus groaned. "I _hate_ SeeD. Arrogant bastards."

"Don't we all, mon?" Wakka asked.

"This year, we're gonna knock those jerks right off their high horse!" Hayner said confidently. "And then we'll be able to rub that asshole Almasy's face in it for an entire year!"

"Alright, ladies, hurry it up!" Larxene said from the doorway to the locker room. "I'm fucking hungry, and sick of waiting on you guys primping and preening in front of the mirrors!"

"We're not—" Sora began.

"Get the fuck out of the boy's locker room, Larxene, mon!" Wakka cut him off.

"Unless, that is, you're in the mood for sausages?" Axel asked, peeking out of his shower stall with a lascivious grin.

"Always. But sad to say, all I see right now is a bunch of pussy—and I'm not Chinese." She retorted, sauntering out before they could try to reply.

"I hate her." Sora said, one hand covering his bright red face.

"Why do you always encourage her, Axel?" Tidus asked.

"Because it's hella funny." Axel sniggered.

"She's kinda right, though—I'm hungry! Let's hurry up and get some _food_!" Sora said, throwing on his clothes without any further ado.

The rest of the guys nodded acquiescently and threw their clothes on, as well, following the ever-exuberant Sora out of the locker room, where they were joined by Larxene and Olette, who had evidently finished talking to Pence.

(KNEEL,PAGEBREAK!)

… _Tuesday's child is full of grace…_

"To Nationals!" Hayner said, lifting his Coke up high.

"To Nationals!" The rest of the team chorused, laughing as they toasted to their first victory of the Nationals. They were now in a hotel in Hollow Bastion, the huge city that sponsored the National Struggle Tournament every year.

"To kicking SeeD's ass!" Tidus added.

Everyone cheered and toasted again.

"And who says you're gonna kick our asses?"

The team all swiveled around to face the speaker: SeeD Academy's Struggle Team Captain, Seifer Almasy, who was flanked by the rest of his team.

"I do." Hayner said, standing up to give Seifer a defiant glare.

"Yeah, right, y'know?" Rai snorted.

"Losers." Fuu, the Vice-Captain, said.

"Let's save the fighting for the ring." Olette said in her usual pacifistic manner, putting her hands up between the two captains. "Okay, guys?"

"Better listen to your girlfriend, chickenwuss." Seifer sneered.

"Shut up, Almasy. No one asked you." Hayner snapped, lips pulling back into a snarl.

"That's enough, you guys." Olette said.

"Why don't you mind your own fucking business, bitch?" Seifer asked.

Hayner bristled immediately in Olette's defense. "Don't talk to Olette like that, you asshat!"

Oddly enough, Seifer didn't retort. Instead, his eyes narrowed, giving Hayner such an intense look that the slightly smaller teen actually moved back a little on instinct. Then, so suddenly that no one had time to react, his hand shot out and grabbed Hayner by the back of the neck. Pulling sharply, he led Hayner out of the side door of the restaurant—still before anyone had quite recovered from their shock to stop him.

"What the _fuck_?!" Hayner demanded, wrenching himself out of Seifer's grasp as they exited the restaurant. "What is your _problem_ , man? Christ!"

"I like you."

Hayner reared up to make a comeback, but was stopped short as Seifer's words penetrated through his adrenaline rush and registered in his brain. "Uuh…" He shook his head. "Sorry, I think I'm hearing things. What?"

"I said I like you." Seifer repeated easily, crossing his arms over his chest and looking far too confident and intimidating for someone who was confessing to someone else. "And my problem is that seeing you and that Omelet bitch so close is starting to _piss me the fuck off_ , especially since you don't even have the balls to ask her out."

"Her name isn't—"

"So I figured I'd confess before you actually _did_ grow some balls." Seifer continued, cutting him off as if he hadn't even realized Hayner was trying to talk. "And hope I wasn't too late."

"Too late…confess…whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold on just a fucking minute, Almasy!" Hayner squawked, holding his hands up defensively. "You can't… _like_ me. We…we're both guys! And we're rivals! I mean…I mean, what the fuck, dude?"

"It's called homosexuality, lamer." Seifer said with a roll of his eyes. "It means I _like_ the fact that we're both guys. And the rivalry thing…just think kids on a playground."

Hayner's eyes narrowed. "Are you trying to tell me that all of these…pissing contests we have are you _pulling my fucking pigtails_ or some shit? Seriously?"

"…Pretty much, yeah." Seifer said. He finally seemed to have clued into the fact that he was, in all actuality, confessing—his cheeks darkened and he turned his face to the side a bit in an obviously embarrassed gesture.

"I don't even _have_ pigtails." Hayner muttered. Then he shook his head again, blinking his eyes furiously as if to wake himself up from a particularly disturbing dream. "Wait! That's not the point! Look…you just…you can't like me. That's…weird. A…and anyhow, even if you really _do_ like me, I don't—"

Seifer's hand shot up, covering Hayner's mouth before he could finish the sentence. "Shut up."

Hayner made a slight attempt to speak through Seifer's hand, but found that he really couldn't. He settled on glaring darkly instead (not realizing, of course, that at the moment it made him look rather like a pouting kitten).

"I realize that we don't exactly have the best history ever," Seifer said, blatantly ignoring the 'well _that's_ the understatement of the year' expression on Hayner's face, "but…could you just…I dunno, gimme a chance before you turn me down? All I'm asking is for one date. That's all, and if you still don't like me afterwards, then I'll back off. Okay?" And he removed his hand.

"I don't know what one date'll do." Hayner said. "I'm straight, Almasy."

"I know that. You think I don't know that?" Seifer asked. An expression had settled over his face that made Hayner's heart do something funny in his chest…like he actually felt _guilty_ for being straight, or something. "But just…even if nothing happens between us, it'd…give me some closure or bullshit like that."

Hayner shook his head. "This has gotta be a joke." He insisted. "You're probably gonna do something to embarrass me, and—"

"I'm not." Seifer said.

"Psyching me out for the Finals, then!"

"You think I'd sink that fucking low?" Seifer demanded, obviously furious at the suggestion.

Hayner frowned, eyeing the taller boy for a moment. "Well…no, I guess not. You're an asshole, but…no."

Seifer snorted contemptuously. "Whatever. So…look," he rifled through his pockets for a moment before pulling out a small scrap of paper and handing it to Hayner, "here's my number. Just call and…let me know when you've got time."

"Right." Hayner said, pursing his lips together for a moment as he stuck the paper into a random pocket. "I'll…see you later, then. I guess."

Seifer stuffed his hands in his pockets, not quite meeting Hayner's eyes. "I…well, bye." He said, turning away and standing stiffly.

Hayner nodded slowly, his gaze lingering on Seifer's back for a moment more, then turned and re-entered the restaurant.

And really, Hayner wasn't sure why he hadn't just thrown the slip of paper away as soon as he'd gotten out of Seifer's sight. But he hadn't.

Instead, a day and a (victorious) match later, he was still staring at it, lips pursed, and wondering why he wasn't throwing it away. And thinking that he probably should throw it away—there was no reason to do otherwise. He _hated_ Seifer, whatever the other teen might have felt, so it wasn't like he had any sort of obligation to go out with Seifer or anything weird like that.

But…whenever his hand hovered near the trash bin, the image of Seifer's face would come to mind. Smirking, arrogant, as always…but in his eyes had been an emotion that caused Hayner to hesitate and, ultimately, draw his hand back. Finally, he had programmed the number into his cell phone and tossed the paper, easing a small bit of his mental anguish, but he was still torn over the prospect of…of _dating_ his _rival_.

And wouldn't it be like…a _betrayal_ to his school—his team!—if he dated the other man? Even if it was a sympathy date or whatever…why was he even _considering_ this?

Every time his thoughts drifted back to that question, though, Seifer's eyes would come back to the forefront of his mind—even in Hayner's thoughts Seifer was an abrasive jerk—and make him consider the date again.

' _Just one date couldn't hurt anything…could it?_ ' He wondered to himself as he opened his phone and called the number. ' _It won't change anything…it'll just to give him closure, or whatever he was babbling about. I don't want him distracted during our match—I'll beat the fucker fair and square!_ '

"The fuck do you want?" The voice on the other end of the line snapped.

"Do you always answer your phone like that, or am I special?" Hayner blurted out before he could think about what he was saying (because, he reflected, that had sounded an awful lot like flirting).

Silence for a moment. "Holy fucking shit…Hayner?"

"…Yes?"

"Fuck…sorry, gimme a second."

Hayner heard some shuffling in the background, then the sound of a door opening and closing.

"So…hi." Seifer said. "Sorry about that…I think somebody gave my number to a telemarketer or something, because they've been calling me at all hours…and I didn't have your number, so…"

"Oh…no, that's fine." Hayner said. "Umm…so, look…my match tomorrow ends at about three, so…if you're free around that time…"

"Seriously?" Seifer's voice sounded so surprised and…dare Hayner think it… _giddy_ that Hayner couldn't stop a small grin from coming to his face.

"Yeah. Figured it couldn't hurt anything…" Hayner said, shrugging even though he knew Seifer couldn't see him.

"Okay, well…my match should be over at about the same time, so…you think we could meet up at the café across from the arena at half-past three? That way we have time to shower and get away from the teams without seeming too suspicious and all."

"Does that matter?" Hayner asked, frowning. How could Seifer ask him out, and then act like he was _ashamed_ of the whole thing?

"I didn't figure you'd want your team to know you were going out with a guy, right?" Seifer asked. "And even disregarding that…two rival captains meeting up, regardless of their actual intentions, is like…an unspoken taboo, right?"

Hayner wrinkled his nose. "Yeah, that's true, I guess." A pause. "Do… _you_ mind if your team knows? That I'm a guy, I mean, not that I'm a rival captain…"

"Nah, they know I'm gay." Seifer said. "And…dude, Marluxia's the fruitiest guy I know, so _me_ being gay was never an issue."

Hayner laughed a little. "Yeah, I know the feeling…well, except the me being gay thing…I mean, Sora's practically shits rainbows, so…I don't figure they'd have a problem with it if I was gay."

"Olette might." Seifer pointed out.

Hayner was quiet for a moment. "There is that." He said slowly.

"It's cool, man." Seifer said. "I'm not really expecting anything to come from this, just…closure, like I said. Plus, Fuu's been bitching at me about it for weeks."

"…Isn't Fuu the one who only speaks in one word sentences?"

"You'd be surprised at all the shit she can get across using only one word." Seifer said dryly. "But anyhow…three-thirty okay with you?"

"At the café across from the arena." Hayner said. "South gate, right?"

"Yeah." Seifer said. "So I'll…see you then."

"Should I dress nice?" Hayner found himself asking.

Hayner was almost positive he could hear Seifer smirking.

"Street clothes are fine." Seifer said. He was definitely smirking. The bastard.

"Okay, then." Hayner said, suppressing his urge to pick a fight. "See you tomorrow."

"See you."

And they hung up.

(KNEEL,PAGEBREAK!)

… _Wednesday's child is full of woe…_

"Great job, guys!" Hayner congratulated the team as they made their way back into the locker rooms after a triumphant match against the Agrabah Sultans. "Let's keep up the hard work, and we'll _definitely_ beat SeeD this year! We're in top form!"

"Hell to the fuckin' yeah!" Axel whooped, slinging an arm around Roxas, who rolled his eyes but didn't push the taller teen away.

"Alright, so…let's all get changed, and then…how's about a free day to celebrate?" Hayner asked.

"A free day?" Demyx's eyes sparkled with happy excitement.

"Yeah—we deserve one after that _fantastic_ match!" Hayner said.

"Sweetness!" Sora giggled, jumping up and down.

"So let's take a shower and _go_ , ladies!" Larxene sneered, snapping a towel at Tidus' rear before slinking into the girls' locker room.

"Hayner?" Olette stopped him quietly as the other guys practically skipped into the boys' locker room. "Can I…talk to you for a minute after you finish?"

Hayner's heart sped up a little and he nodded, flushing. "Y-yeah, of course." He sputtered.

She smiled, causing his heart to flutter a little. "Okay. I'll be in the front lounge, then."

He nodded, then went into the locker room to take the quickest shower of his life. He ignored the teasing jeers of his teammates as he threw on his clothes and scrambled out of the locker room to the lounge, where Olette was just getting a soda from one of the machines.

"Olette?" He said.

She jumped a little, startled, but was smiling again when she turned to face him.

"Sorry." He said with a sheepish grin.

"Wasn't expecting you so soon." She shrugged it off, motioning to the machine. "Drink?"

"I've got a Gatorade." He said. They settled into an awkward silence. "So…you…wanted to talk to me?"

She nodded jerkily. "Yes, I…" She looked around for a moment, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear shyly. "I just, um…" She squeezed her eyes shut, blushing a deep red as she blurted out: "I really like you, Hayner, and I was wondering if you would go out with me?"

His jaw dropped.

"I-I got you a gift!" She added, pulling a small package out of her pocket and thrusting it at him nervously. "It's a key chain. Because your key ring is…well, it's only got keys on it, so I thought you could use something to liven it up a bit, and oh my God I sound like such an idiot I'm so sorry—!"

"No, no, it's fine." He said, his cheeks almost as red as hers. He opened the little baggy, grinning stupidly at the Struggle Bat key chain inside. "I-it's awesome, thanks…but I don't have anything for you…"

"That's okay." She said.

"And I…of course I'll go out with you. 'Cause I…" He said, looking down and shuffling his feet. "I really like you, too. I have for a long time, but I didn't know how to…"

She cut him off with a kiss on his cheek that immediately turned his words into senseless babbling, and giggled. "S-so…since today's a free day…"

Somehow, he jerked himself out of his cloud-nine-stupor. "No, I…I can't." He said, the regret in his voice completely genuine. Frantically, he searched for an excuse—he couldn't tell her what he was actually putting her off for! "I…a f-friend of mine is in town for the tournament, so we…I'm gonna catch up with him some. That's part of why I decided to give us a free day today…I mean, it's because we won, too, of course, but…shit, I'm not making any sense…I-I can't reschedule, since he's only in town for the tournament…"

"No, of course I understand!" Olette said. "This is kind of last minute, anyhow! You should definitely go out with your friend!"

Inwardly wincing at her word choice—at the whole situation, really—he nodded. "Yeah, but…I will definitely find time to go out with you soon, okay? I really…really want to!"

She nodded vigorously. "M-me, too…"

He opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off when his phone alarm went off. "Oh, shit! I…I gotta go, Olette." He said, pulling his phone out of his pocket and turning the alarm off. "We're meeting at three-thirty…"

"Go, go!" She said. "And have fun, okay? We have lots of time to date!"

Her assurance caused a goofy grin to come to his face.

"Yeah, we do." He said. Then, before he could wimp out of it, he leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek.

She flushed and waved. "See you!"

"See you." He said, and turned and ran (he just barely refrained from skipping) to the south gate to get to the café.

Seifer was already waiting, leaning up against the front wall of the café. He actually _wasn't_ wearing his customary clothes, but instead a fitted pair of dark blue jeans and a nice white tank with a red cross on it. And the beanie was gone, making him look…well, rather naked, actually, for all that it had been replaced by a pair of sunglasses. But it allowed Hayner to finally see the wheat-blond hair that the hat usually hid, messy and a little wet just like Hayner's was.

"There you are." Seifer said, his usual scowl falling into place.

"Sorry." Hayner had to stop himself from snapping. "Got held up."

Seifer nodded wordlessly, pushing off the wall and shoving his hands in his pockets. Seifer's light blue eyes swept over Hayner's body, and Hayner's eyes did the same to Seifer's body—and Hayner had a sudden, clear understanding of why he kept hearing girls swoon over SeeD's short tempered captain. Without the baggy pants and trench coat—or the bulky Struggle vest—to conceal it, Hayner realized that Seifer actually had an enviably handsome—and _fit as hell_ —body. Hayner had to squash the errant wish that Seifer had worn his usual belly vest, horrified by the thought.

"You ready to go?" Seifer asked when the surprisingly brief moment had passed. Hayner wondered if he was imagining Seifer's voice as being deeper than it normally was.

"Yeah." Hayner said, and found himself going red when his stomach chose that precise moment to let out a defiant growl.

Seifer laughed—Hayner found it to be a much more pleasant sound than he had expected (he hadn't expected it at all, actually). "Good thing we met at a café, eh?" He asked teasingly.

"Is it okay to eat here?" Hayner asked as Seifer held the door open for him. "I-I mean, I can wait if you had something else planned…"

"Nah, 's fine." Seifer shrugged. "I didn't…really plan all that much. Besides, I'm starved."

Hayner found himself smiling. "Nothing like a good Struggle to work up a man's appetite."

Seifer eyed him thoughtfully. "A man's, maybe."

"Fuck you!"

Another laugh. "Yeah, sure. Besides, a _good_ Struggle match might…mine was against the Atlantica Mermen."

Hayner winced. The Mermen were a notoriously weak team. "That bad?"

"As always." Seifer said, stretching back in his seat and running an irritated hand through his hair. "Wish I'd thought about that yesterday—I would've given myself time to run for a while before meeting up with you."

"Run?" Hayner's eyebrows rose.

"Can't fight here, or I could get kicked out of the tournament." Seifer's scowl returned. Hayner wished it would go away again. "Running's the next best thing to work off energy."

Hayner nodded, resting his chin on his hand. "Haven't they gotten _any_ better since last year?"

Seifer considered the question. "I didn't…play against them last year, but…their stats have improved a little, I think." Then he heaved a sigh, leaning forward onto his hands. "I finished my match in three hits."

" _Three_?" Hayner exclaimed.

"Yeah. The entire thing was over and done with an hour ago—I got here at, like, fifteen 'til."

"You've been waiting here since _two forty-five_?" Hayner asked incredulously. "You totally could've run to the station and back!"

"That would _not_ have been enough to run that farce of a match off." Seifer said, making a face. "And I'd rather not have to stop running 'til I did."

"You could've texted me."

"I didn't mind waiting."

Hayner wanted to keep arguing the point (why was arguing with Seifer so damn _exhilarating_ all of a sudden? Usually it was infuriating) but the waitress chose that time to come and take their orders, which were given without much deliberation. Neither man needed a lot of time to decide.

"How was _your_ match?" Seifer asked before Hayner could pick up where they had left off.

"Better than yours, but not all _that_ challenging." Although he recognized the conversation change for what it was, Hayner let it slide for the time being. "It was the Sultans, so…"

"Eh." Seifer waved the team off. "I shouldn't have even bothered asking. The whole tournament knows our teams are the only two that're worth a shit."

"Not all of the teams are _that_ bad…"

"Not that bad, but not that good, either." Seifer scoffed, nodding at the waitress politely as she set their drinks down in front of them. "A few of 'em could be really good if they had better coaches or captains—ones that actually, y'know, _cared_ —but on the whole I'll probably be running a lot until we face you in the finals."

Hayner couldn't help the smile that stretched across his face at the unexpected (and probably unintentional) compliment. "Yeah, you're probably right." He admitted.

Seifer nodded as if he had expected the response (he probably had). "Then again, I guess I could get surprised." He said thoughtfully. "You guys surprised me last year."

"Oh?"

"Yeah." He said. "C'mon, Hayner, everyone knows Twilight used to be _almost_ as shitty a team as the Mermen are, now."

Hayner made a face, but was forced to agree. "But that's partly because we're still a pretty new team."

"Didn't stop you from giving us a hell of a fight last year." Seifer said as he leaned back in his chair. "It makes me sick to see these teams who are obviously half-assing their way through the tournament, hoping to get a lucky break. I'd take a million new teams like Twilight."

"Yeah…but then again, Struggle's not even a hundred years old yet." Hayner pointed out. "And as popular as it's gotten, it's still nowhere near as popular as, like, Blitz Ball. We're still sharing members with the BB team. I think the teams will get a lot better and more competitive as the sport gets bigger."

Seifer snorted. "Sure, but that's not gonna happen while we're in school. Pisses me the fuck off."

"They're talking about making it Major League." Hayner added. "So we might have a chance—"

"By the time they've drawn up all of the bullshit paperwork and actually got the thing started, we'll be wasting away in the workforce." Seifer said. "And even then, there's no guarantee that'll help it get any more popular than it already is—the first few years will be just as bad as this, I guarantee it."

"You're such a fucking pessimist!" Hayner said. "Christ, man!"

"I'm not a pessimist, I'm a realist." Seifer countered. "I'm also not Christ—piercings don't do it for me, thanks."

Hayner stared at him for a moment, and then choked on a laugh. "Dude, that's terrible!"

A shrug.

After that, a surprisingly comfortable silence settled over them, broken momentarily by the waitress as she brought their food and refilled their drinks.

"This…doesn't really feel like a date." Hayner said hesitantly as he ate.

"Should I ask for candles and a violin?" Seifer asked with a smirk. "Maybe go buy you some roses?"

"Don't be an ass." Hayner said, giving him a dry look.

"It's in my nature." Seifer said. "Besides, whaddya want me to do? We're having some sort of fun, right? Stimulating conversation, passable food…"

"But…but that's my point!" Hayner said. "It's so…I mean, I'm not nervous at all! Are all gay dates this…relaxed?"

" _You're_ not nervous." Seifer said rather ambiguously. "And we're both guys—we relate better with each other than a chick. Besides…you still don't like me, so it's not like you're gonna have butterflies or some shit."

But then, suddenly, Hayner _did_ have butterflies.

"Do _you_ …have butterflies?" Hayner asked.

"A few." Seifer shrugged. "Not a big deal."

"And do you…date often?" Hayner asked.

"Not _often_ , but every once in a while." Another shrug. "I dated a ton of girls in middle school, then just kind of realized one day that I didn't actually _like_ any girls. Then, when I joined the Struggle Team in high school, I realized I _really_ liked looking at the guys in the shower, so I ended up dating…ah, shit, what was his name?" He rolled his eyes "Some upperclassman or other. Obviously, he didn't leave much of an impression on me, and we only dated for, like, a month or something. I dated around for a while after that—slept around a little, too, I'll admit—and then just kinda…got so into Struggle that I didn't have time to date and all that. And then…" His cheeks colored. "Then we had that match against you guys last year and…and I saw _you_ …"

Hayner's eyes widened, then he looked down at his plate. "O…oh." He squeaked.

"What about you?" Seifer asked in a rush of air, obviously frantic to get the topic of discussion away from himself.

"Oh, me?" Hayner cleared his throat awkwardly. "I…well, if you'd believe it, I actually dated Larxene in freshman year."

"You mean that catty bitch on your team?" Seifer asked, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise.

"Yeah." Hayner snickered a bit. "If you wanna know the truth, you'd have had a really good chance of converting me right after we broke up. I was scared shitless of girls for a while."

"Who wouldn't be?" Seifer asked. "She is one crazy bitch."

"She's not… _that_ bad." Hayner said. "She just takes some getting used to…a _lot_ of getting used to, actually…but…well, I won't go into that. It's her story, not mine. But she's justified in some of the stuff she does, to an extent. She's still batshit insane, don't get me wrong, but she's got reasons for that. And sometimes she's actually really cool."

"But usually she's a bitch."

Hayner laughed. "Yeah, yeah. I really did like her for a while. But we both decided we were better off as friends…or, well, as close to being friends as Larxene lets people get…so we broke it off." He shrugged. "She's…the only serious girlfriend I've ever had. I mean, I go on a dates every now and then, but mostly I just focus on Struggling."

"Except for the thing with Olette."

Hayner blushed as the statement brought to mind his earlier conversation with Olette. He smiled again, unable to stop himself. "Yeah."

Seifer didn't say anything for a while. "She's a nice girl."

"Yeah." Hayner said again, dreamily.

Seifer's lips curled up into a bitter smile that Hayner didn't appear to notice. "You guys confessed to each other, didn't you?" He asked, propping his cheek up on his hand.

Hayner did look at him, then, and was once again struck by the strange spark in Seifer's eyes usually angry blue eyes. He felt the blood rush to his cheeks, and for some reason suddenly felt deeply ashamed of himself. "I…well, she confessed to me right after today's match and I…said I'd go out with her."

Seifer sighed and began picking at his food so he wouldn't have to look at Hayner anymore. "It figures one of you'd grow a pair just after I confessed." He murmured, so softly that Hayner had to strain to hear him. Then, louder, "So what'd you come here, for? You should've just told me."

"But you…I couldn't do that to you." Hayner said, blinking in surprise. "I mean…didn't you want closure, or whatever?"

"You're such an idiot." Seifer said, but somehow it didn't sound like an insult at all. Instead, the statement was heartbreakingly affectionate.

"Well, _sorry_ for being such an idiot." Hayner said with a frown, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms over his chest huffily. " _You're_ the one who likes me."

Seifer snorted a little, as if in agreement. "So?"

"So, what?" Hayner asked.

"So, what happened?" Seifer asked impatiently, as if his question should have been obvious. "Your little girlfriend asked you out before you asked her—I _gotta_ hear this."

Hayner's frown deepened, and he eyed the other captain warily, but finally he nodded and leaned forward again. "Yeah, okay. So right after the match I told the guys they could have a free day for winning, and she asked to meet me after my shower…" Oddly enough, as he went through the story, he couldn't quite feel as excited about it as he had when it had been happening. It probably had something to do with the carefully blank expression on Seifer's face, which couldn't quite hide the pain showing in his surprisingly expressive eyes (why had Hayner never noticed how telling Seifer's eyes were before?). It made him feel…guilty, which in turn made him feel confused. Why should he feel _guilty_ about something he'd wanted to happen for _years_? "…And then she gave me this!"

He reached into his pocket to show Seifer the little charm Olette had bought, only to have his delving fingers come into contact with a hole in the bottom of his pocket. "Oh, shit!"

"What happened?" Seifer asked, the mild concern on his face the only genuine emotion he had shown throughout the entire telling of the story.

"There's a hole in my pocket! Oh, man, you've gotta be _shitting_ me!" Hayner exclaimed, standing and searching all of the pockets he could find on his person (which was just the four on his pants). "Dammit!"

"Don't get your panties in a twist, chickenwuss." Seifer said as he stood, too, that oddly teasing tone back in his voice and on his face.

But his words caused Hayner to pause a little in his frantic searching. It took him a moment to realize what it was—Seifer hadn't once called him 'lamer' or 'chickenwuss' during their…date.

"You haven't been that many places since you got it." Seifer continued as he threw a tip onto the table, not having noticed Hayner's pause. "Let me pay the bill, and then we'll retrace your steps and see if we can find it, okay?"

"O-okay." Hayner said, not entirely sure why his heart was sinking in his chest. Was he actually feeling…disappointed that Seifer had gone back to calling him names? Then he realized what Seifer was doing. "No, hey, wait, let me—"

Seifer waved him off. "I asked you out, so I've got the bill."

"But I—"

"I said I've got it." Seifer said, giving him a no-nonsense look. Not that it really mattered, since he was already handing the cashier his money and getting change. "So what's this thing we're looking for?"

"A key chain. It's shaped like a Struggle Bat." Hayner said as they left the store, his eyes scanning the ground frantically. "Aw, man, I can't believe I _lost_ it!"

"Calm down, lover boy." Seifer scoffed, although the hand he lay on Hayner's shoulder was reassuring. "We'll find it."

"Yeah, okay." Hayner said, taken aback by how effortlessly Seifer's assurance put him at ease.

Seifer nodded, and slowly retracted his hand—like he wasn't sure it had been welcome, and also wasn't sure if he wanted to pull it away. "Alright…so where all did you go?"

"Just from the lobby Olette and I talked in, to here." Hayner said, putting his hands in his pockets awkwardly. "I just don't know how I didn't notice—"

"Ah!" Seifer suddenly cut him off, looking both ways carefully before trotting out into the street and bending over to pick something up. Then he turned, smirking again like he always smirked, and held up something that Hayner couldn't quite make out clearly—he could, however, see that it was obviously a key chain, and that it sparkled blue in the sunlight (he shoved the thought about how it was almost the same color as Seifer's eyes out of his head).

And then, so suddenly that it seemed like it could only have come from some sort of twisted nightmare, the sound of hastily braked tires squealed through the air, and the next thing Hayner knew Seifer's body was flying through the air like a rag doll…

To Be Continued…


	2. I'll Walk

… _Thursday's child has far to go…_

"All that BS about _me_ psyching _you_ out for the tournament, and you get me hit by a car. Great going, lamer." Seifer sneered from his hospital bed, arms crossed over his chest as he glared at Hayner, who was standing shamefacedly to one side.

"I wasn't _trying_ to get you hit by a car! You just…ran out into the street and…I didn't mean for it to happen!" Hayner said, not sure if he was angry with Seifer for being such an ass about this, or pleading with Seifer to believe that he really _hadn't_ meant for it to happen.

"Uhuh." Seifer said disbelievingly, mouth quirking to one side.

Without thinking, Hayner jutted his bottom lip out huffily. "Don't be such a _jerk_!" He whined.

Seifer made a funny noise, eyes widening a little as a light blush came to his cheeks. To cover it, he looked away from the other teen, hands fisting in the sheets. "Look, just…go back to the hotel, lamer. You can't do anything here, so you might as well go…practice, or take that girl out for dinner, or…something. You don't have to stay here."

"But I…"

"Seriously. Just _go_." Seifer said, his customary scowl returning to his face. "I might be out of Nationals, but you can bet your ass I'll be Struggling again in college, so you'd better fucking keep in shape so we can have a good rematch later, okay?"

Hayner nodded wordlessly.

"And if I hear that you threw your match because of this—"

"I would _not_ throw a match!" Hayner growled, insulted by the very thought of it.

"Good. It was a clean break, so…I'll be back to kick your ass soon enough." Seifer said. "Now fuck off, chickenwuss, just the sight of you is giving me a headache."

"Oh, shut up, you asshole." Hayner said, and turned to leave, but paused in the doorway. "Hey, Seifer…"

"What is it now?" Seifer groaned.

"I'm…I really am so—"

"Don't." Seifer snapped. "It's not your fault you're straight and it's not your fault I got hurt, so just…go away."

Hayner hesitated for a moment longer, then nodded and left.

Or, at least, he left the room. It didn't feel right to leave Seifer all alone like that; so even if Seifer didn't actually know he was there, he decided to sit in the little lobby near Seifer's room and wait for the rest of Seifer's team to turn up.

"Oh, it's time to take dinner to Room 316," said a nurse at the nearby nurse's station.

"Well, he's probably hungry." Another nurse giggled. "You know how teenagers are! Especially the boys!"

The first nurse nodded, though she didn't laugh. "You know, my son mentioned a boy with the same name being in that Struggle tournament that's going on right now. I wonder if it's the same one?"

"I hope not." The other nurse said, sobering. "If he is…oh, the poor thing. He'll never be able to Struggle again, not with his legs like that. Even with surgery…I mean, even if he _can_ Struggle again, it won't be at the same level as he probably was before."

"He's probably got something else going on even if it isn't Struggling, the poor thing. He looks like some sort of jock."

"Mmm." The other nurse started giggling again. "If only we had some older patients with a body like that!"

"Shame on you, Marie! He's a high school student!" The first nurse gasped.

Hayner tuned them out, then, a shiver going up his spine. Room 316…that was Seifer's room, wasn't it?

He stood abruptly, startling an older man sitting on the other side of the lobby, and left to return to…

And sure enough, Room 316 was Seifer's room.

Hayner stopped at the door, staring up at the number disbelievingly.

How could Seifer…not ever be able to Struggle again?

' _He just said we'd have a rematch!_ ' He thought desperately, hands fisting at his sides. ' _He just said that, so…so he can't be…_ '

"Are you a friend of Mr. Almasy's?"

He turned, blinking at the first nurse from back at the nurse's station, who was pushing a small cart with a tray of food on it.

"You can go in if you want, dear." The nurse said, smiling kindly at him. "I'm sure he'd love a visitor."

"I-is it true that he won't Struggle anymore?" Someone croaked. It took him a moment to realize that the hurt, on-the-verge-of-tears voice was his own.

The nurse's face filled with sympathy. "I'm afraid so, dear. His legs…" She paused, pursing her lips together. "Do you want me to be completely frank with you, honey?"

"O-okay." He whispered.

"It'll be a miracle if he can walk again after this, bless his heart." She said softly. "Never mind about _Struggling_."

"Oh." His voice was so small that he could hardly hear it himself, and he realized suddenly that he was actually trembling. "But…but he…he…just said we would…Struggle again…and I… he _can't_ …"

"Oh, sweetie." She put her hands on his shoulders. "Don't you worry one bit about your friend, hon. He's a strong one—I'm sure he'll walk again. And maybe…maybe one day you can have a match with him. But for now…for now, you need to be strong for him. He needs good friends to help him through this; no time for tears."

His throat had closed up so tightly that he couldn't say anything, so he just nodded instead.

"Now…I'm gonna give him his dinner." She said, releasing him. "Why don't you go to the bathroom and freshen yourself up a bit, then come see him, alright?"

He nodded again and watched her go into the room. He started toward the bathroom to do as she had suggested, but was stopped when the nurse came running back out of the room, the tray of food flying after her.

"Mr. Almasy!" She screamed, just barely dodging the tray.

"I said get the fuck out!" Seifer's enraged voice snarled from in the room. "Didn't I tell you bitches to leave me the fuck alone? I'm not hungry, dammit!"

"You have to eat!" She said. "It's bad for you—"

"So is getting hit by a car, and I survived _that_ , didn't I? So _fuck off_!"

She shrieked, then snatched the tray up off of the ground and stormed down the hall, shooting a glare at Hayner as she passed as if he had had something to do with Seifer's attitude.

Frowning—both because of her and because, honestly, couldn't Seifer ever _not_ be an asshole?—he approached the door again, peeking inside.

"Why won't you leave me—" Seifer began, but stopped when he realized it was Hayner. His jaw clenched tightly, and he turned away. He might as well not have, though, because Hayner had already gotten a good look at the shining tear trails on his face. In a tight voice, he said, "I thought you already went home, chickenwuss."

"I was waiting for your team to show up." Hayner said, entering the room and shutting the door behind himself. "And then I heard…I heard about…" His throat constricted again, keeping him from finishing the sentence.

"Just go away." Seifer murmured. "I told you I'd Struggle again, didn't I?" Then, softer, "Please, Hayner, I don't…I don't want…"

But by this point Hayner had already crossed the room, and cut Seifer off by throwing his arms around him. Both of them were quiet for a moment.

And then, with a shaky, quiet sob, Seifer began to cry.

(KNEEL,PAGEBREAK!)

… _Friday's child is loving and giving…_

"—Even listening to me, you silly goose?"

Hayner blinked as a hand was waved in front of his face, looking at Olette. "Oh, sh—I mean, I'm sorry, Olette. I'm just…so out of it…"

Olette giggled. "It's not a big deal; I know you have a lot going on right now." She tilted her head to one side thoughtfully. "Maybe we should have waited until after the tournament…?"

"No, no, it isn't that." Hayner said. "Just…I'm still kind of in shock about what happened to S—Almasy."

"Oh." She said, her gaze saddening. "Yes, it did come as a bit of a shock, didn't it? Have you heard anything about how bad it was? Will he be able to finish out the competition?"

' _No…he won't ever be able to compete again…_ ' Hayner thought darkly, but instead said, "No, I haven't heard anything. I heard it was pretty bad, though…I doubt he'll be competing."

"God, I'm so sorry." Olette said. "I mean…of course I'm sorry for him, too, but…I know how you were looking forward to a rematch with him."

' _Change the subject, Olette, please…_ ' "Yeah, I was."

She looked at him for a long moment, watching the disheartened way he picked at his food. "You know, Hayner, I really don't mind waiting."

"What? No, of course not." He said. "I'm sorry, Olette, I'm being a terrible date…what were you saying before?"

"Well…" And she launched back into the previous conversation as easily as if they'd never left it at all. She was obviously passionate about whatever she was talking about, but Hayner couldn't keep his mind on her—it kept wandering back to Seifer clutching to him and crying. So, to keep her appeased, he made sure his gaze stayed on her face, and nodded or shook his head whenever it seemed appropriate.

The irony of the situation wasn't lost on him. He had spent so long _dreaming_ about this very moment, and when it finally happened he found himself wishing he could be somewhere else. With another man, even! It had to be…well, Hayner wasn't sure what it had to be. But it definitely had to be _something_.

' _Maybe if I visit him I'll be able to stop thinking about it._ ' He thought.

"Visit who? Stop thinking about what?"

He jumped a little. "Eh?"

"You just said 'maybe if I visit him I'll be able to stop thinking about it.'" Olette said, giving him a curious look.

' _Oh…shit._ ' He gulped. "I…I'm sorry, Olette. I didn't mean to say that."

"I shouldn't think so." She said, voice a mixture of amusement and annoyance. "I was talking about ' _Wicked_.'"

"…Right, yeah." He said, because it was the only thing he could think to say.

The corners of her mouth tilted up into an odd half-smile. "You're still thinking about Seifer, aren't you?"

He found himself blushing, for some reason. "…Yeah. I'm really sorry, Olette. I don't know what's gotten into me."

"Well…why don't you visit him, then?" She asked. "Maybe it _will_ help you to stop thinking about it, hm?"

"Maybe…" He said and let his head drop into his hands. "This is the worst first date ever, Olette. I'm really sorry."

She laughed, reaching across the table to ruffle his hair. "It's fine, Hayner. Besides, I…think you're kinda cute when you're distracted."

He blushed, although he felt that it was more because she was making him think of his mother than anything else—and how embarrassingly awkward was _that_?

"I'll just…pay, then." He murmured, standing and pulling out his wallet. And that, of course, sent his thoughts back to Seifer.

"Say, Hayner…" Olette said. When he looked at her, she was looking at his waist. At the key chain hanging from the waistband of his pants, to be more precise. "Where's the charm I gave you?"

' _I hid it in my suitcase because looking at it makes me think of how I—and it—ruined someone else's life._ ' He couldn't say that, of course. "I…there was a hole in my pants, and…jeez, some boyfriend I'm turning out to be, huh?"

She shook her head. "Oh, Hayner…it's not your fault, you know."

He turned away from her so she wouldn't see the tears that pricked at his eyes.

' _Yes it is, Olette…_ '

(KNEEL,PAGEBREAK!)

… _Saturday's child works hard for its living…_

"We're going to visit Seifer in the hospital after today's match." Hayner said a few days later, on the day of the Final's match—they were up against SeeD. Somewhat unsurprisingly, the previous year's champions hadn't _needed_ their captain to make it that far. As Seifer had said: the other teams in the tournament were rather abysmal.

"We're _what_?" Larxene asked, her voice deadpan.

"Visiting Seifer." Hayner said, feigning calm. "Win or lose. It's good sportsmanship."

"Fuck good sportsmanship!" Roxas said. "Seifer's an asshole! Why the heck—"

"Because I said so, Roxas!" Hayner said, slamming his fist up against a locker.

"Whoa!" Sora, who had been standing next to the locker in question, yelped. "Hayner, what's your _problem_?"

"No…nothing." Hayner said. "I just think we should go visit him, alright?"

"I think it's a good idea." Olette piped up. "I heard it was a pretty serious accident, so…I'm sure he'd be happy to have visitors."

"Fine." Roxas muttered. "But he didn't have to spaz out about it."

"Hayner?" Olette gave the team captain a sternly expectant but still adoring look that made him wince inwardly.

"My bad, Roxas." Hayner said, opening his locker and grabbing his vest so no one would see him roll his eyes. Then, schooling his expression into its usual pre-match look, he turned back around. "Okay, guys—let's kick some SeeD ass, shall we?"

Everyone cheered and followed him out of the locker room to the arena, where a sizeable crowd was waiting and cheered them out onto the platform. They bowed to their opponents, though it was obviously hard for both teams to do, then the majority of the teams left the stage, leaving the first contenders on the platform.

" _Alright, folks! This is sure to be an exciting match today!_ " The commentator said over the speakers. " _It's time for Midgar's National Struggle Tournament Finals to begin! And here to start us off are the Number Two Doubles Partners: Twilight Town High School's Tidus and Wakka versus last year's champion school SeeD Academy's Yuffie and Selphie!_ "

And so the matches began. SeeD took the Number Two Doubles match, while Twilight Town took the Number One (Roxas and Axel versus Fuu and Rai). The Number Three Singles Match was a throwaway match for SeeD, since their alternate (Vivi) had had to step in against Twilight Town's Number Three (Larxene).

" _But it looks like SeeD hasn't given up, yet!_ " The commentator said as Cloud, SeeD's Number Two, struck the finishing blow on Sora. " _Even without their infamous captain, SeeD is putting up quite a fight this year to hold onto their title as Struggle Champions! And now it's time for the final fight of the tournament: Twilight's team captain, Hayner Duncan, versus SeeD Academy's Squall Leonhart!_ "

"It's Leon." The brooding teen in question muttered as he climbed up onto the platform to face off against Hayner.

Hayner smirked, dropping into his stance. Then, leaving a few seconds to get the tension level up, the bell's toll cut through the air to signal the beginning of the match.

Without any pomp and circumstance, Hayner shot forward, aiming for Leon's side but getting parried easily. The two teens threw themselves into the battle, neither holding anything back.

Until, that is, right near the end of the match…when suddenly, while struggling to gain control of the fight, their faces ended up close together. Hayner's eyes moved up of their own volition, widening at the sight of the perfect mirror to Seifer's scar. He couldn't stop himself from freezing—hardly noticed his body doing it—as he looked at the scar, a vision of Seifer's face pushing to the forefront of his mind.

Whether Leon noticed the reason for the sudden pause or not, he took advantage of it and pushed forward, throwing Hayner off balance and sending him crashing to the ground. Lightning-fast, Leon gathered up all of the balls that had fallen from Hayner's vest, and a second ringing of the bell signaled the end of the match—all before Hayner had really had a chance to recover from his fall.

" _And Sq—Leon Leonhart wins the match!_ " The commentator yelled over the screaming cheers of the fans. " _Making SeeD Academy the champions for another year!_ "

Hayner couldn't move. He had…he had _lost_! He just sat where he had fallen on the mat, having stopped even _attempting_ to get up once the bell had rung.

"…ner? Hayner!" Someone shook his arm, pulling him out of his stupor. "You okay?"

He blinked and looked up at Olette, whose gentle hand was on his shoulder.

"Y-yeah." He sputtered, shaking himself the rest of the way out of his daze and standing a little shakily. "I…I can't believe I…"

" _Lost spectacularly_?" Roxas screeched furiously. "Yeah, neither can we! What the _fuck_ , dude?"

"I…shit, I'm so sorry…" He said, covering his face with a hand. "Shit, shit, shit."

"Oi! You stupid mother fuckers, this ain't the time er the place for this shit." Cid hissed around the toothpick hanging out of his mouth (he wasn't allowed to smoke in the arena). "Go shake the winners' hands!"

Roxas shot him a final 'I'm-gonna-shank-you-for-this' look, then turned and joined the line to shake hands with their opponents. Hayner forced himself to follow.

The whole team was somber and quiet as they filed back to the locker room.

"Okay, everyone…I know you're all upset about losing…" Olette began.

"Upset?" Axel interrupted angrily. "Upset's the _least_ of it! We're fucking _pissed off_!" He turned on Hayner. "You fucking _froze_ , dude! I've never seen you…I mean, what the hell were you _thinking_ up there?"

Hayner couldn't find an answer, looking down and shaking his head instead.

"What's that supposed to mean, Hayner?" Tidus demanded. "What in the _fuck_ is that supposed to mean?"

"Stop it, you guys." Larxene, of all people, said. "Christ, would you just look at him? For fuck's sake—he sure as hell doesn't need all of _us_ beating him up about it when he's doing twice that to himself."

"But he—" Sora began.

"Larxene's right." Demyx said. "Just…leave Hayner alone, and let's take our showers and…and get ready to go visit Seifer."

"We aren't seriously going to—" Wakka started to say, grimacing at the thought.

"Yes, we are." Olette said firmly. She put a hand on Hayner's back and nudged him forward a little. "Just go, guys. I'll be waiting in the lobby when everyone's ready to go."

Larxene gave them a suspicious (and threatening) look for a moment, then followed after Olette to go to the girls' showers.

Everyone stared at Hayner, who couldn't meet any of their gazes.

"I…I'm so sorry…" Hayner choked out.

Roxas snorted, turning and going to the showers without another word. Silently, hesitantly, the others followed after him, although Demyx squeezed Hayner's arm as he brushed past him.

The locker room as tense and quiet all throughout their showers and while they got dressed and went out to meet up with Olette, whose smile was forcedly cheerful. Larxene looked as sullenly aloof as always.

"I bought Seifer some flowers!" Olette said brightly, handing the small bouquet to Hayner. "I figured you should give them to him, being the captain and all."

Hayner nodded, staring down at the flowers blankly, and followed behind them in a subdued manner as they walked to the hospital, which was only a few blocks away. His teammates' tension seemed to begin fading away as the adrenaline from the matches began wearing off, and they all saw just how hard Hayner was taking his loss.

Sora fell back into step with his captain. "You know…you aren't the only person who lost today, Hayner." He said lightly.

"Please don't, Sora." Hayner mumbled, not looking up from the bouquet. "Not right now."

Sora smiled sadly and nodded.

"Here it is!" Olette said, still trying to keep everyone's spirits up by acting double her normal cheerfulness. "Now we just have to find out which room—"

"316." Hayner blurted before he could think about it.

Everyone looked at him.

"I…heard someone on his team talking." He sputtered, practically burying his face in the bouquet to hide his blush.

"Riiight." Larxene said with a soft, contemptuous sniff. "Let's go, then."

They piled into the two elevators and went up to the third floor, everyone slowly but surely falling back into their normal habits except for Hayner, who stayed suspiciously quiet.

When they stepped off of the elevator, everything seemed to be in chaos.

"It's Room 316 again!" A nurse—Hayner recognized her as one of the ones from the other day—exclaimed as they walked cautiously down the hall.

"And he's been in an even fouler temper since he watched that Struggle thing!" Another nurse said. "I've never had a patient his age who put up such a _fuss_ every time someone tried to go into his room!"

"The only time when he was _awake_ and calm was his first night here when that other boy—" The first nurse cut herself off, catching sight of Hayner. "Oh! Oh, my dear boy, thank goodness you're back!" She said, practically skipping to his side. "Please, you have to calm Mr. Almasy down! He won't stop throwing things at the nurses and even the orderlies are having a hard time keeping him under control!"

"Uh…" Hayner said, but could say nothing more as the nurse pulled him to the room, yanked the door open, and pushed him in.

"YOU!" Seifer roared, and Hayner had to duck quickly as a vase sailed toward his head. "You stupid son of a bitch, you threw the fucking match! Asshole, I told you right to your fucking face that you'd better not throw the fucking match and you—"

"I didn't throw the match!" Hayner said, the first time he had sounded at all spirited since the match they were screaming about had ended. "I—"

"Then what the fuck do you call that?!" Seifer demanded, pointing accusingly at the TV (which was showing a commercial for cat food). Then he picked up the remote control and threw that at Hayner, too. "I fucking _saw_ you stop fighting, you _fuck-tard_!"

Hayner dodged again, then was forced to use the bouquet to knock a pillow out of the way before it could smack him in the face. "I told you I didn't throw it! I _froze up_!"

"You _what_?!" Seifer asked. "You actually expect me to _believe_ that? I've seen every match you've fought for the past _year_ , and had a match against you myself! You _never_ freeze up, ever! You can't think I—"

"It wasn't my fault!" Hayner yelled over Seifer's continued ranting and raving.

"Not your fault? Then whose fault—"

"Yours!" The words burst out before he could stop them. "It was _your_ fault, because I saw that scar on his face and it made me think of _you_ , you…you big _idiot_!"

It seemed, for a moment, that the entire hospital had gone quiet at his exclamation. Hayner himself clapped his hands over his mouth, flowers fluttering to the floor.

"Oh my God, y'know?" Rai, who was standing with the rest of the SeeD team to one side of the room, said, mouth hanging open.

"E-excuse me?" Seifer stuttered, eyes so wide they nearly took up his entire face.

Hayner took his hands away from his mouth—to deny what he had just said, or take it back, or explain it, or to say _anything_ except what he actually said:

"I've been like this ever since you confessed to me last week!" He found himself blurting out, hands clutching at his hair as if to stop himself from going crazy. "Even when I was on my date with Olette all I could think about was your _stupid, scarred face_ and how much I preferred being with _you_ , and then we were Struggling, and his face got really close to mine, and I saw his scar, and it was almost exactly like yours, and…and…I just _froze up_!"

"Hayner…!" Olette gasped.

"What else am I supposed to do when just the thought of you makes my heart jump out of my chest?" Hayner said, one hand grabbing his shirt over his heart. His eyes stung with tears as he continued, voice hitching over his words. "A-and how can I help freezing up when…when it's my fault that you…you'll never get to Struggle again?"

"What's he talking about, Seifer?" Selphie asked, looking confusedly between the two captains.

"Hayner was…with me…when I got in the accident." Seifer replied carefully, though his eyes never left Hayner.

"Hayner?" Olette said again.

"We were on a date." Hayner said, lips drawn together in a thin, but determined, line. "He…he told me he…l-liked me a couple of days before, and then…the day of our match against the Sultans…I went on a date with him. I-it was only to give him closure, or whatever, but…but we were having a really good time, and then…I lost that charm you gave me, so he was helping me look for it, and he found it…in the road…and while he was getting it, a…a car…"

"Hit me." Seifer finished for him, suddenly very matter-of-fact. "I'm convinced Hayner did it to knock me out of the tournament."

"Don't even joke about that!" Hayner squawked indignantly. "I would never do something like this on purpose!"

"Then we're in agreement." Seifer sneered. "So stop fucking blaming yourself, you lamer. How many times I do I gotta say it's not your fault before it gets through that thick skull of yours?"

"Just because I didn't do it on purpose doesn't mean it wasn't my fault!" Hayner said, hands clenching into fists at his sides.

"Yeah, well, I said it's not your fault, so it's not your damn fault!" Seifer retorted sharply.

"You can't just decide that!"

"I'm the one who can't walk! I'll decide whatever I fucking please!"

Hayner growled, scooping what was left of the bouquet up off the floor and throwing it at Seifer's head (although it wasn't aerodynamic enough to actually reach). "Why did I fall in love with such an _idiot_?!"

Seifer retaliated by throwing the alarm clock that was next to his bed at Hayner's face (sadly, his awkward positioning threw his aim off (no pun intended), so it connected with Hayner's shin). "I could ask the same question!"

"Would _both_ of you idiots _stop it_?" Larxene asked, rolling her eyes. "Honestly!" She grabbed Hayner's head and pulled him over to the bed, shoving his face against Seifer's. "There! Now both of you shut the fuck up, already!"

Wide eyed and lips attached, the two captains stared at each other.

Someone behind them coughed.

Hayner reeled back with a loud gasp only for Seifer to reach out, grab his shirt, and pull him back down into another kiss.

(KNEEL,PAGEBREAK!)

… _But the child that is born on the Sabbath day…_

In the weeks that followed, Hayner and Seifer's relationship was surprisingly easy (Olette's only comment had been that ' _if I didn't think it was so cute, I would feel insulted!_ ' and everyone else seemed to think that if she didn't have a problem with it, they shouldn't either), while everything else was unsurprisingly hard. The surgery that Seifer needed he hadn't been able to afford—his parents' medical insurance wasn't enough to cover it, and the insurance money he should have gotten from the owner of the car had been a no-go, since said owner was an illegal immigrant and had no insurance at all.

But he had, in pure Seifer style, gotten through what he could with much aplomb (and much more cursing). Within the next year he had gotten his GED (being unable to actually attend enough school to graduate) and become proficient enough in a wheelchair to warrant his release from the hospital. His casts had been removed to be replaced by leg braces, which he hated with a passion. He wasn't afraid to express his hate, either. Naturally. And, also naturally, he had decided to attend the college Hayner had gone to, since his previous Struggle scholarships had been rescinded in the wake of his accident.

Now, it wasn't at all uncommon to see him wheeling alongside Radiant Garden University's Struggle team as they did their morning laps, yelling at them to: "Keep the fuck up, for Chrissake—I'm in a _wheelchair_ and I'm faster than you!" If he wasn't there, or in the gym watching them practice (or just yelling at them some more as they practiced), he could be found either in class, or with Hayner.

It had been shockingly easy for Hayner to adapt to having a boyfriend in a wheelchair. He often caught himself cursing at people for leaving broken beer bottles on the sidewalk ("Someone could blow a tire, Goddammit!") and worrying (usually needlessly) over cracks and inconsistencies in the sidewalks ("Whose bright idea was it to make _cobblestone ramps_?!"). This had prompted him to start a project to repair said cracks, which was still in the process of getting funding and supplies. He was pleasantly surprised by how many people were willing to help, though, so—once he had everything else—finding laborers wouldn't pose a problem.

All in all, they had a pretty good life. The road to recovery was long (and filled with lots of physical therapy), but they would make it. One day, Seifer would walk again—tentative steps, with crutches and braces, but steps nonetheless.

And he even got the chance to give Hayner roses and a candlelit dinner, complete with violin.

It was worth the punch.

… _Is bonny and blithe, and good and gay._

The End!


End file.
